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Show concerning the factor of Elkwan, for In the room he had given up to her were three autographed likenesses of a beautiful girl. Then Quarrier described In detail the accident to his power schooner off Cape Jones, the wild night on the bay with an Improvised and useless rudder, rud-der, and the stranding on the beach of AkimiskI island. "It was the next morning that this red-headed pirate, McDonald, discovered discov-ered us and sent a boat ashore." "You say he took some of your stuff?" asked Guthrie. "Yes, he said he needed flour and gasoline." "And he got it?" suggested the other, oth-er, with a laugh. "Yes, but Instead of paying what it's worth here, on the bay, he paid me St. John's prices." "Well, for a pirate, he was rather liberal, wasn't he? He halls from St. John's, they say. Has been up hera two summers, but always went back By Gerg Marsia Copyright by The Pena Publishing Co. WNU Servic. the ears of the former mascot of the First battalion, Royal Montreals. "So there's a dying Indian woman at the house?" Quarrier was saying. "Yes. He asked me to see her. She has a frightful pulse and temperature. It's a matter of days hours, I should think." "Matter of squaw-man, also," sniffed Quarrier. The girl's straight, brows contracted with Irritation. "No, I don't think so. It's a matter of big heart. Old Anne, the Cree cook, found her sick In a tip!, when the Indians were here In June for the trade. Out of sheer humanity, human-ity, they took care of her." "You believe that story?" scoffed the man of science. The eyes of the girl hardened. "Well, Mr. Grundy, it's none of your business or mine, is it?" "I should distinctly say It was my business to have my sister, without so much as an apology to me, sharing shar-ing his house with his squaw," protested pro-tested Quarrier in tones of outraged dignity. "Very well. How would you like to have me sleep with you and the men in the trade-house? He's given me his 'room. What more could he do? And I'd advise you as a guest of Sir. Guthrie Guth-rie to he careful what you say. Did you notice his face?" "You mean the scar?" "No, I mean the mouth and the eye." "What about them?" "Just this, blind man. I'd feel very sorry for the person who was the cause of Mr. Guthrie losing his temper. tem-per. Whether it's pity or affection, 1 don't know, but rather than have the last hours of this poor child disturbed, he'd throw you into the river and the rest of us with you." "Nonsense. I'll report him to his superiors at Albany if he conies any high-handed business with me." "Arch," she taunted, "you know that you're really a bit timid, underneath." under-neath." The man (lushed angrily and started to reply, but the girl stopped him with her raised hand. "You were pretty scared when that blow struck us rather lost your head, brother.'" Then she said, soberly: "1 advise you to be very careful how you bluster to the factor of Elkwan." - Guthrie appeared at the door of his house and called them in. to supper. As Dr. Archibald Quarrier followed m top lr T P- mm Wl WW ' rassment "And I shall revel In your whitefish." Quarrier turned petulantly. "There you go again, Joan, always making remarks at my expense," then addressed ad-dressed Guthrie. "I see from your books that you are not Interested in science." With a significant glance at the girl, Guthrie soberly answered: "No, I fear I haven't the scientific mind. I waste my time up here reading fiction and history poetry, too." "Poetry?" With silent deprecation, Quarrier shook his head as he took the chair Gordon offered at the table. Old Anne shuffled In with the steaming steam-ing stew and crisp whitefish, her wide, wrinkled face alight with pride in the dignity of her office. Quarrier was deep in the narrative of his summer sum-mer voyage to the east coast of Hudson's Hud-son's bay in the interest of i Toronto syndicate, which had been formed to explore the region and to exploit, if commercially practicable, the copper and Iron deposits known to exist, when the sound of coughing from an inner room brought Guthrie to his feet. "Pardon me," he said, and left them. Quarrier's thick eyebrows knotted. "He's paying the piper now. How an educated man, as he seems to be, can come up here in this Godforsaken country in the first place, and then take up with a squaw Pah !" The girl he addressed sat tense, with chin up, listening, as though she had not beard. In a moment Guthrie opened the door, his face gray with anxiety. "Could you come a moment?" he asked the girl who had risen from the table. "You said you could help she's pretty bad?" Joan Quarrier hurried to her medicine medi-cine kit in Gordon's room, emerged, and followed him. There, to the annoyance an-noyance of the man who ate heavily of Anne's cooking, they stayed until he had finished. At length, when the opiate had brought respite to the sufferer, suf-ferer, Joan and Guthrie returned to the living room. "I'm sorry, sir," said Guthrie, "that you should be disturbed that I should need the services of your sister, but she's been a godsend." Quarrier nodded stolidly, without removing his pipe from his mouth. Then, as if spurred by a sense of duty to the performance of a task not too disagreeable, cleared his throat and began : "Mr. Guthrie, may I ask how you, a man of education and family, find yourself your-self in a minor position, so to speak, with the Hudson's Bay company?" A corner of Guthrie's mouth lifted. His rather deep-set eyes shifted from the questioner to meet the glance of the girl, half amused at the abrupt question, half wondering at his an swer. "Your question is a fair one," he replied. "I came here for my health. I came back from overseas with gassed lungs." "Ah, I see. Where was your home, may I ask?" "Montreal." "Y'ou you can't be a relative of Charles Guthrie?" demanded the other, his interest suddenly aroused. "Brother." "Y'ou, a brother of Charles Guthrie Guth-rie !" Quarrier's prominent eyes bulged in amazement at the factor of Elkwara. "Y'ou are more flattering to my brother than to me," and -Guthrie joined Joan Quarrier In an amused smile. "But you're not staying In this country coun-try this business, since you've regained re-gained your health?" "I don't know. I rather like the life." "Charles Guthrie is a member of the syndicate which sent mi to the east coast to examine those iron and copper deposits. He'll be interested to hear from you at first hand." Again the linn mouth of Guthrie shaped a faint smile. "I'm not so sure of that. He's rather rath-er given me up as u black sheep, you know." "For staying up here, I presume?" "Yes, for not coming home this summer." "Urn 1" Guthrie rose, and lighting a candle, for the September night had fallen, carried It to the sick room, where old Anne was on guard. Upturning, he lit the small living-room lamp. And In the mind of the woman who watched, surmise followed surmise j STORY FROM THE START Garth Guthrie, Canadian war veteran, having to live In the open on account of weakened lungs, is factor of a Hudson's Bay post at Elkwan. He came back from the conflict with a permanently scarred face, which he realizes cost him the love of his fiancee, Edith Falconer. Sir Charles Guthrie, his brother, Is a millionaire war profiteer. With Etlenne Savanne, halfbreed, his firm friend, Garth meets Doctor Quarrier, geologist, and his sister sis-ter Joan. Their schooner has drifted ashore. Quarrier complains com-plains he has been robbed by a man known as "Laughing McDonald." Mc-Donald." CHAPTER II Continued 3 Guthrie fiercely resented the presence pres-ence of the people whose boat was slowly approaching the landing. Why had they been sent him at this time these strangers? This bearded ass of a geologist would spread himself all over the place, demanding attention; would doubtless ask liim to go to Aki-miski Aki-miski and save the stuff salvaged on the beach. Well, he would pack them off to Albany at once. But the sister seemed a different sort nice eyes she had, straight, direct, but something sad about them ; a sense of humor, too, for she laughed flat-in Quarrier's face at the McDonald story. So the freetrader free-trader was in the bay still? Strange, that ! Did he mean to winter there? If he did, it would cut into the Christmas Christ-mas trau'e in foxes would be bad for Elkwan. Daring chap, this McDonald. McDon-ald. Who was he. anyhow? Tlie arrival of the boat cut short his rumimtinn. "I see you brought plenty of food," commented the factor with a smile, as the sailors, under the direction of Etienne, began unloading boxes from the heavily freighted craft.' "Yes, we didn't want to run short before reaching Fort Albany," replied Quarrier. "But the excess weight will bother you on these tide-flats." Then he continued. con-tinued. "Doctor, I regret that 1 shall have to put you In the trade-house with your men. 1 have a spare bedroom bed-room for Miss Quarrie. Yon will eat at my quarters, of course." "Do, we don't expect much at a small trading post, Mr. Guthrie," replied re-plied Quarrier, magnanimously. "If you can make my sister comfortable, it's perfectly satisfactory." The girUaughed. "As sister has put up" for three months with a most uncomfortable un-comfortable two-by-five berth on a wobbly schooner, Mr. Guthrie," she said, "1 know I shall revel in your hospitality." She had shed her coat and sou'wester sou'west-er and Guthrie's eyes measured her with a quick glance. Taller, he thought, than she seemed in the boat, and cleanly made. The eyes which had seemed black, he saw were brown. Young, too, she was; much younger than her brother, and what hair! As he led the way across the clearing clear-ing he wondered how the presence of this white woman would a fleet the girl with the dark skin who was slowly coughing her life away. lie found himself embarrassed tit a loss for an explanation of the situation to his "guest. "Miss Quarrier." he forced himself to begin, "we have a very sick girl in the Imuse it is unfortunate we are so crowded, but I have no other room. I'm giving you mine." He had stopped as he spoke, and stared down at his moccasins; then continued, while her questioning eyes studied his face. "She came here at the spring trade very sick would have flickered out in weeks without proper food. Old Anne and I have done our best, but canned milk and brolh are all we had fur her. And now It may be any day I was terribly anxious about her to get home. You noticed it when we met you?" "Yes, I noticed It," replied the girl. "I knew you were worried about I something. I'm so sorry, Mr. Guthrie. I We shall be a great burden at such a I time." I "No. it's not that. I have room for you, and the others don't matter. But l it will be unpleasant for you In the house." Miss Quarrier straightened, threw hack her head and held his embarrassed embar-rassed glance as she quietly said: "Would It help you to know that I was a nurse overseas through the last - ihrec years of the war?" lie went red under the deep Ian. She would not mind Nindn, I lien she. lo whom agony and death had been commonplaces. "I am glad you will understand. Von see she, somehow, wants me with her at I he end-fears I'll not he i here. I've promised her." As he spoke, the quizzical look :if he girl sol'lened lo one of pity. "1 know I will ho.p you." l.'ndor a sky Mushed with the rose of lie northern twilight, .loan Quarrier :nd her brother stood on the high j hore of the Ell'.-.n. whose flat sur-,'ace sur-,'ace caught and oeld the warm tones if the heavens, (in guard before the iclor's house. Inside Ihe stockade, lay he great nlrodnlo, satisfied, since his ii redact Ion, Ihal these people were l Kilnvnn with Ihe consent i)C Ills asier, but nursing, nevertheless, a y dislike of the man wllh hairy i, who had dared attempt lo rub if t si? "You're Not Hunting Geese Here, Art You?" in the autumn. This year he told some of the Indians that he would winter in a cove at the south end of the island. Akimiski is famous for silver and black fox." "I can't understand why the company com-pany doesn't run him out of the bay if he's hurting their business." Guthrie laughed. "Why", man, he has as much right here as we, or the Itevillon Freres. And as to running him out, I'm inclined to think that McDonald would take a lot of running. run-ning. Did you happen to go aboard his schooner?" "Y'es, I went board to get my money." "Y'ou didn't notice a machine gun or two lying around?" "No !" "Well, the Crees say he has them. Evidently, he has come to stay." "So you're going to sit calmly here and let him get the fur?" snorted Quarrier, contemptuously. "That's it," agreed Guthrie. "Yon see, we're a bit afraid of this wild man with the scarred face. The rumor has drifteo up here-that he had an impressive impres-sive war record." , The irony was lost on the geologist "Afraid to fight for your rights, eh?" he ridiculed, oblivious of the bullet-furrowed bullet-furrowed cheek of the man who faced him. At the reproach, the face of Guthrie lit with amusement, but a glint in the half-closed eyes prompted Joan Quarrier, Quar-rier, mortified by her brother's gau-cherie, gau-cherie, to intervene. "To a Canadian veteran, that remark re-mark is positively insulting. I fail to recall anything of -a warlike nature na-ture in your manner with our pirate, Arch. As a matter of fact, you seemed quite overawed." "Overawed? Ridiculous!" snapped Quarrier. "I was glad to sell flour and gas we couldn't take with us." Guthrie's twinkling eyes met those of the girl. "They say his scarred mouth is rather awe-inspiring. Possibly Pos-sibly scars are repulsive to your brother," he suggested. "They are to some people." The tone of the last the sudden tightening of face muscles the swift sobering of the eyes, spurred the quick Intuition of the girl, to pierce the armor of his raillery, to surmise what the seared cheek of the speaker might have brought to him of bitterness, and pain. Put why? she wondered. The red line from eye to ear only lent dignity distinction, to the cleanly modeled features. Why should this badge of service be the source of secret se-cret humiliation? Put she was confident confi-dent that It was. Quarrier changed the subject. "Hy the way, Mr. Guthrie, when can you send for the stuff I left on the beach and take It to Albany? I can pick It up next spring when I return to the bay." Fvldently deeply occupied with his thought, for a space the man addressed ad-dressed made no answer; then he said. Indifferently: "Some time this winter, win-ter, possibly, when the lee sets hard In the strait." "What? Not before then? There are some valuable ore specimens and st oivs boxes of them. That pirate will come back for them." "We'll be hunting geese until cold weather drives them south." "You're not hunting geese here, arr. you? Why couldn't you gif before you go on your hunt tomorrow, In fact?" "Archie!" The sharp challenge of .loan Quarrier at the callous Insistence of lu-r brother was checked by tho level tones of the factor (TO UK TONTINI'KIM Why Had They Been Sent Him at This Time? his sister Into the living room where the table had been set for three, little in its meager furnishings escaped his roving eyes. "We are very primitive here, you see," Guthrie said us lie watched the geologist's minute Inspection of his quarters, which terminated at the bookshelves. "And I cannot guarantee Anne's bread, It varies, but her caribou cari-bou stew and broiled whitelish I hope you will like." 'My brother, as a scientist, Mr. Guthrie, Is nothing If not thorough In hit inspections," apologized Joan Quarrier with a grimace which failed to conceal from her heist her euihiir- |